Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Ryan T. Anderson has a book to sell. Everything he writes about transgender people has numerous links to his page at Amazon.com. The current piece is no exception.

First things first. Jennifer Finney Boylan's piece at the New York Times is here. Boylan writes very well and I usually learn something by reading her articles. This piece is no exception. It is a response to Ryan Anderson's idiotic book.

I have not read Anderson's book. However, I have read numerous pieces that Anderson himself has written regarding the book. From those polemics it is clear (at least to me) that Anderson (who I think is a gay man) is defending the teachings of the Catholic Church. Anderson has done this before. He was a co-author of a book about marriage that was intended to derail marriage equality, again on behalf of the Vatican.

Jennifer Roback Morse continues to promote family dysfunction on behalf of the Catholic Church. Morse is like a toxic cultist. Morse believes that obedience to the teachings of the Church is more important than someone's relationship with their brother. Supposedly answering the question of whether someone should attend his brother's same-sex wedding:

Should you go to the wedding? In a word, no, you should not. They may ask you, "Would you go to the wedding of a divorced person who was remarrying?" The correct answer is, "No, I would not. They are entering publicly into an adulterous union. I would not go." If they reply, "But you went to Uncle Harry's second wedding and didn't say a word," the proper answer is, "I was wrong to do that. I should not have gone."

Tuesday, February 27, 2018

Chad Groening, who writes for American Family Association's news blog, is very disappointed with Defense Secretary Mattis. Groening is also a reporter for the local CBS affiliate, WCBI. His most recent story at that outlet was a few sentences of commentary on “Alcorn State Band Marches in Tupelo.” Walter Cronkite he is not. Perhaps the reason is lack of reason which might be one of the reasons that AFA is designated a hate group.

Xochi Mochi having some fun entertaining children. It's all perfectly harmless and its intent is to get kids interested in reading.

I have no idea whatsoever who Desaré Ferraro is. Presumably it's a woman. Nor am I familiar with Orange County Family Action PAC or Advocates for Faith & Freedom. However they paid Christian Newswire for a press release regarding a “Press Conference to Oppose Drag Queen Storytime and LGBTQ+ Youth Fair at Santa Ana Library.” Sense of timing: Their press release was the same day as the event.

Neither the IRS nor the Federal Election Commission are familiar with that PAC. Nor in fact is the California secretary of state.

In Holata, FL (pop 9,329) Shlomo Rabinowitz is responsible for issuing business licenses. The central Florida city only has 29 employees. Citing deeply held religious beliefs, Mr. Rabinowitz has refused to issue a business license for Tasty Pig, a would-be pork store which recently acquired the space previously held by a defunct bridal shop.

None of that is true. While Holata is the Seminole word for alligator, there is no city in Florida by that name and Shlomo Rabinowitz is a fictional character. The image is a Brooklyn rabbi. The circumstances are obviously preposterous. No one is forcing poor Shlomo to consume pork. He just has to issue a business license which is based primarily on a certificate of occupancy.

Monday, February 26, 2018

I cannot possibly write anything creepier than the mere existence of this idiotic tome which is being promoted by hate group leader Mat Staver. Mike Huckabee participated in this intellectual assault as did Staver. I have no clue who John Aman is.

COMMENTARY: The issue in Dumont v. Lyon, like the Masterpiece Cakeshop case, is how to protect religious liberty — set out in the Constitution — when people might be forced to act contrary to those beliefs.

Neither the title of the polemic nor the commentary are accurate. A Catholic adoption agency has not been “targeted”
and Dumont v. Lion has no similarity to the Masterpiece Cakeshop case. If anyone has been target it is the gay couples who are turned away. Moreover, no one is compelled to act contrary to religious beliefs in that Catholic Charities is not forced to be an agent of the State of Michigan.

Adoption agencies (with a few exceptions) do the work of the state and are paid with taxpayer dollars. The Georgia senate has now passed a measure that allows tax funded agencies to discriminate against LGBT people.

Republican state Sen. William Ligon sponsored the bill which passed the chamber by 35 to 19. Religious organizations claim that they have a duty not to place children with gay couples. The state wishes to endorse their prejudice with a license to discriminate. This means that children might not be placed with the best available adoptive parents.

“Thoughts and prayers” have met their match for banality and impotence.

American Family Association's own news blog refers to the group as a “pro-family organization.” It is the dishonest implication of an endorsement by independent media. Furthermore, with AFA the “family” in pro-family is limited to heterosexual Christians where no member is LGB or T. And Wildmon's big idea?

In the ongoing discussion about gun control in the aftermath of the shootings in Florida, the American Family Association (AFA) says heart control should be at the forefront.

Sunday, February 25, 2018

According to Bradford Richardson, a Washington Times polemicist: “Growing body of research rejects transgender movement.” That is intellectually dishonest. That title us a lie. It is unlikely that Richardson's spew is going to make anyone really believe that there is new and revealing research about transgender people or that there is an expanding amount of such research that rejects gender affirmation as a means of mitigating the symptoms of gender dysphoria.

However, it does cause those who already disapprove of trans people to harden their views. It makes them less capable of receiving accurate information based on science in contrast to theology. Ultimately, Mr. Richardson further marginalizes a small and vulnerable group of people who have a medical condition that does not seem to conform to scripture. This amounts to the deliberate promotion of ignorance.

Saturday, February 24, 2018

Mark Christopher “Chris” Sevier is literally crazy, a convicted violent felon, vexatious litigant, child support deadbeat and a perjurer. Yet, according to a rundown at SPLC's Hatewatch, Sevier is responsible for “parody marriage” bills in Wyoming and South Carolina. These measures are a futile attempt to undo Obergefell v. Hodges. The Wyoming bill died in committee. The South Carolina measure H.4949 is hopefully headed in the same direction.

Exactly how someone like Sevier is influencing lawmakers is a mystery. I have to presume that his presentation is no saner than his activities.

I will get back to Mr. Sevier but first, the South Carolina bill is still in play. In summary:

Friday, February 23, 2018

It's the same old crap from the same old crappy places. This time it is Starkville, Mississippi that objects to LGBT people. Not all of the people of Starkville mind you but four of their seven aldermen voted against the application of Starkville Pride. None of the brave aldermen who voted against the application would state their objection. I think we all know what this is about. These schmucks do not approve of us because of their religious beliefs. We don't need their approval to be who we are. Unfortunately we do need their approval for a parade permit. Approval that they chose to withhold.

Family Research Council thrives on divisiveness. Without conflict, FRC would cease to exist because none of its leaders have the skills to lead the group in any other way. In all the years that I have been following the hate group they have never shown any evidence of attempting to find common ground. Creating, spreading and increasing strife are at the center of FRC's activities. The “problem” that incites their hate might be Muslims but it is usually LGBT people. Today is no exception. Via email:

Understandably, the seemingly never-ending conflicts between religious freedom and the LGBT movement can lead us to become numb. It is easy to get used to them, especially when we are confronted with more of what we have seen already -- public employees, small business owners, and others in the public square facing opposition for their belief that marriage is between a man and a woman.

If you have not seen this masterpiece I urge you to do so. It is impeccably crafted in every way starting with the superb directorial work of Luca Guadagnino and script by James Ivory. Timothée Chalamet gives an Oscar worthy performance as Elio, the 17 year old teen who falls madly in love with handsome 24-year-old Oliver.

Thursday, February 22, 2018

Things that will make you gag include Peter Boykin. For the second year in a row Boykin as Gays for Trump is trying to organize a rally in Washington, DC for Trump. Gays for Trump is little more than a website promoting Boykin. It has a GoFundMe campaign noting that: “$410 of $5,000 goal
Raised by 12 people in 7 months.” Very impressive. Boykin's other “enterprise” is called The MAGA Network. It has an atrocious website that is currently featuring a clip from another thing that make me gag — Alex Jones.

Looking at these sites it appears that Mr. Boykin is seeking to make himself into some sort of celebrity. However, most of those folks have at least a modicum of talent.

Last December Tony Perkins was just livid that a judge overturned Trump's transgender troop ban. More recently, Trump's Secretary of the Army, Mike Esper, said that he doesn't think it's an issue. Esper, by the way, was once a senior executive at the ultra-(mostly Christian) -conservative Heritage Foundation.

Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Miranda Blue had an excellent piece about Focus on the Family and Liberty Counsel yesterday. Apparently Focus on the Family decided that filing annual reports is just too tedious so they declared themselves a church. I check the database. They are not claiming to be a religious organization exempt from filing. Focus on the Family is actually claiming to be a church.

Even more appalling is the fact that the Internal Revenue Service has permitted this change of status which also makes Focus on the Family virtually immune to the potential of an audit.

“Mr. Brown places piety above palpability. And yet he has the temerity to lecture us about reality.”

Part of NOM's latest gimme. The bar on the left uniquely highlights the paragraph.

National Organization for Marriage doesn't actually do anything. At least nothing worthwhile. Essentially it raises money to stay alive in order to raise money to stay alive. In the process it denigrates LGBT people, excusing its bigotry as a religious obligation imposed by the Vatican.

Today is no exception. In a rather long winded diatribe Brian S. Brown asks for money with phony reasoning while disparaging the LGBT community.

Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Ryan T. Anderson is first and foremost a Defender of the Faith™. The music major who has a doctorate in philosophy from Notre Dame has subordinated his intellect to the teachings of the Catholic Church. A man who is probably gay subscribes to the Vatican's anti-gay dogma. Go figure. Short of deprogramming Anderson is a done deal — for life.

A license-to-discriminate bill that has been going nowhere in the Iowa legislature since 2016 seems to be getting new attention. According to the Des Moines Register, Senate Study Bill 3171, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, might soon come to the state senate floor for consideration.
Iowa law protects LGBT people from discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations. Those protections will be nullified if SSB-3171 becomes law. The measure also preempts the local LGBT nondiscrimination ordinances that are in effect in a number of Iowa municipalities.

Teens across the nation, fed up with school shootings, are planning marches, media events and three-minute demonstrations at the White House in order to get across their messages of frustration with the Second Amendment and to demand lawmakers take immediate action.

An email that I received Monday morning from Family Research Council bears the subject line: Christians are not a hate group. Of course that is true. However, Family Research Council is a hate group according to Southern Poverty Law Center.

The important thing to understand is that FRC is not a hate group because SPLC says it is. Rather, FRC is a hate group because it routinely lies about, and disparages, LGBT people and Muslims. If Tony Perkins doesn't want to be called a hate group leader he has the power to stop FRC from behaving as a hate group. SPLC did not make FRC a hate group. Perkins did that with a little help from some questionable hires.

Saturday, February 17, 2018

Tony Perkins will argue vociferously that a fetus has rights. Mr. Perkins doesn't seem to think that a teenager has any rights at all. A child, Mr. Perkins, is entitled to quality medical care provided by competent and qualified practitioners.

Perkins has decided to comment on a case in Ohio where a transgender boy has been terribly abused by his parents. His father deliberately uses his birth name and incorrect pronouns. To make matters worse, the parents insisted that the teen attend a Catholic school which also refuses to treat the child as he deserves to be treated. The school makes a point of using the teen's wrong name. Each time they do that, it is a stab in the heart to a kid with gender dysphoria. According to the complaint, the boy's father told him to kill himself because he was going to Hell anyway.

Friday, February 16, 2018

The text at the bottom of this website image reads: "Jacksonville City Government is working against its citizens. We should be able to repeal unfair and unjust laws." Behind the smiles in the stock photo is anti-LGBT bigotry.

In February of 2017 the Jacksonville city counsel passed, an ordinance that prohibits discrimination against LGBT people. That made hate group leader Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel very sad. Staver launched a vigorous effort to get Mayor Lenny Curry to veto the measure which would have been futile given that it passed the council by a super-majority. Staver is still fuming that gay and trans people cannot be put in their place.

Thursday, February 15, 2018

Thursday at the Christian Post, hate group leader Michelle Cretella has some comments relative to a story I wrote about earlier today. It concerns an Ohio teen suffering from gender dysphoria and the conservative Catholic parents are causing him to suffer. Cretella, the president of the American College of Pediatricians (a small Christian splinter group), is not a psychiatrist and hasn't practiced medicine in about three years. She explains:

If the judge rules in favor of the ideologically driven gender clinic, the ability of all parents to protect their children of any age from all aspects of this social and medical experiment will take a tremendous hit.

Christians who will be touring Israel this month. Who is paying for this junket?

Israel's tourism ministry has confirmed that Trump's faith advisory board will be visiting Israel February 17 to 21. The delegation is reportedly being led by Mike Evans, an evangelical Christian author and Christian Zionist. Behold a partial list of potential freeloaders:

As a survivor of gun violence, every one of these shootings is gut wrenching, infuriating and frustrating beyond reason. I cannot be certain but I think that Trump blamed this on abortion rights. At least that is how some received what he said. We all know that NRA support is dependent upon not blaming our insane proliferation of WMD.

A the National Review, Robert VerBruggen thinks that the solution is to arm teachers. Highly trained police officers miss most of the time under the stress of the situation. Meanwhile, mass shooters seem to be calm and highly focused on their “mission.” An armed teacher with a pistol is likely to a) kill more innocents kids and; b) get killed himself by an assassin with an AR15. Robert VerBruggen claims to be a gamer. He needs to finally grow up.

In Columbus, Ohio parents are struggling to retain custody of their 17-year-old trans son in order to prevent him from receiving hormone therapy. According to the testimony of medical experts, the father refuses to call the boy by his chosen name and the kid is near suicidal. Presently he resides with his supportive maternal grandparents. The court appointed guardian concurs that he should stay where he is and receive the appropriate treatment.

In 2016 the teen was hospitalized. He has been diagnosed with gender dysphoria and the typical symptoms including an anxiety disorder and depression. Some of the local media have been suggesting that the anxiety and depression are comorbid with the gender dysphoria.

Wednesday, February 14, 2018

I hate to pick on a nun but I understand that Sister Marysia Weber, a board certified psychiatrist, has been appearing at anti-LGBT seminars alongside Dr. Paul Hruz to disparage gender transitioning. Doing so indirectly disparages transgender kids who are especially vulnerable. Here is what I know about Sister Marysia:

According to the website of the St. Louis Guild, a group within the Catholic Medical Association:

Her primary work includes assessing and treating seminary candidates, priests and religious. She has also offered numerous formation workshops on a variety of formation issues for U.S. Bishops, seminary formators and vocation directors.

They are referring, of course, to Washington florist Barronelle Stutzman who decided in September, 2013 that the flowers she sells could not be used at a same-sex wedding. Stutzman achieved about 18 minutes of fame and ADF has been pimping her for over four years. ADF has raised countless thousands of dollars off of Stutzman.

Salespeople should tell the truth. When a salesperson lies it means that they lack the skills to be persuasive on the merits. Lies are the product of laziness, unprofessional conduct, a lack of respect for the craft and probably a lack of training. Professional selling is based on perspective. Do the benefits of buying this product or service outweigh concerns for [whatever]?

Don Hinkle is a columnist for The Pathway which is the organ of the Missouri Baptist Convention. The outlet is trying to sell an ideology. For all his self-righteous sanctimony, Don Hinkle is a liar. He simply lacks a fervent commitment to, and respect for, the truth. Hinkle writes:

These days, Brian S. Brown will say just about anything to get people to send him some money. Brown's efforts are almost comical. The latest grift from the leader of National Organization for Marriage begins like so:

Four significant victories in recent days have made it clear that NOM is on the march and making tremendous strides to protect marriage supporters and people of faith. We're winning in the courts, with voters and in the court of public opinion.

In case it is not obvious, this is the start of a money-beg. According to my (admittedly challenged) understanding of the English language, the “we” in “we're” is the organizational collective for NOM. At least that is the intended meaning. The sales pitch is that NOM is achieving notable results with donors' money.

When I originally wrote about Liberty Counsel being a church I was being facetious in describing the fact that Liberty Counsel is recognized by the IRS as a religious organization. It turns out that I was more accurate than I realized because the Internal Revenue Service considers the hate group a church auxiliary. As such they can operate in total secrecy, are not required to file an annual report with the IRS.

According to the Service, to be considered an integrated church auxiliary, the organization must have an affiliation with the church and the church has to be the primary source of support.

Hate group employee Peter Sprigg of Family Research Council gets to air his opinions throughout Christendom. Conservative religious outlets lack sufficient discernment to appreciate the fact that the profoundly bigoted Sprigg is not exactly the brightest bulb in the chandelier.

"Walgreens should have taken a lesson from Target when they made a point of announcing their pro-transgender bathroom policy which was devastating to their bottom line in terms of their stock price," adding, "I don't think corporations in general should make a point of publicly endorsing a radical transgender bathroom policy."

After bemoaning the advent of Will and Grace along with antipathy for Bill Clinton, corporate support for LGBT equality and the effectiveness of the Human Rights Campaign:

But decades before all that happened in entertainment, politics, and business, there was something else that made same-sex “marriage” basically inevitable: the formal divorce of marriage and procreation.

A few days after their marriage, Morffi was terminated by her Catholicschool employer.

On Thursday, a Miami Catholic school fired what some parents called one of the best teachers at the school for TWG — Teaching While Gay. Jocelyn Morffi married the love of her life Natasha Hass. Then Ms. Morffi posted this to Instagram:

Conservative Christian lobbyist Rev. Mark Creech says North Carolina would be better off not getting Amazon’s planned second headquarters if the company tries to shape public policy in a pro-LGBTQ direction.

Brian S. Brown of National Organization for Marriage claims to have provided invaluable support to marriage discrimination in Bermuda. Does Mr. Brown wish to take credit for damaging Bermuda's tourist economy? According to an email sent to supporters:

NOM played a significant behind-the-scenes role in the tremendous victory in Bermuda. Our team advised pro-marriage supporters there on strategies to preserve marriage and I travelled <sic> there twice to meet with activists from Preserve Marriage Bermuda to discuss potential strategies. In 2016, Bermuda conducted a national referendum to advise the Parliament on whether gay 'marriage' should be allowed, with 68% of voters resoundingly rejecting same-sex 'marriage.'

Saturday, February 10, 2018

Saturday, American Family Association is doing it again. The hate group is striking out at yet another company that will tell them to assume an improbable position. It is a mix of crazy and stupid. The subject line of the email reads: “Walgreens shocking new policy puts women in real danger.” The headline is even more unhinged: “Unrestrained: Men can follow women into restroom for kicks.”

Liberty Counsel, an anti-LGBT hate group really doesn't like being called a hate group. The Christian supremacist law group sued Guidestar USA after Guidestar included the Southern Poverty Law Center designation on its website. The suit was frivolous and the case was dismissed.

The basis of Liberty Counsel's suit was the Lanham Act. The purpose for the Lanham Act, which was enacted in 1946, is primarily to protect trademarks from infringement and the use of deceptively similar trademarks that might cause consumer confusion. False advertising can be a violation of the Lanham Act under certain circumstances.

Friday, February 9, 2018

Hate Group American Family Association is now protesting Walgreens. According to an email from leader Tim Wildmon:Walgreens' new policy welcomes men into women's restrooms.

The folks at AFA are impervious to learning anything from experience. Obviously Walgreens has a policy of permitting customers to use facilities consistent with their gender identity - Something that typically aligns with their presentation.

I will have more on this in the afternoon (I am currently in my orthopedist's waiting room). I Perhaps I should see if Peter Sprigg has any medical advice given his spectacular expertise.

Thursday, February 8, 2018

Conspiracy theorist Victor Davis Hanson has a piece in the Washington Times (AKA The Moonie Daily) titled: “Why FISA-gate is scarier than Watergate.” After providing some details about both the Watergate Scandal and Iran-Contra, he writes:

We are now in the midst of a third great modern scandal. Members of the Obama administration’s Department of Justice sought court approval for the surveillance of Carter Page, allegedly for colluding with Russian interests, and extended the surveillance three times.

Readers find some amazing things including this video from November, 2017. The Slowly Boiled Frog is briefly mentioned at around 10:20. I did not queue it up because the entire thing — titled “Dr. Michelle Cretella on Transgenderism: A Mental Illness is Not a Civil Right” — is cringe-worthy. It was produced by the extreme right-wing and orthodox Catholic cult, TFP. Think John Birch Society combined with Opus Dei.

Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Michelle Cretella is a hate group leader. She is president of the American College of Pediatricians, a small splinter group with a membership of about 200. The real peer group is the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Cretella is also out of her depth. Children with gender dysphoria are treated by psychiatrists. Michelle Cretella is not a psychiatrists. Currently, she is not even a licensed physician. I'll get back to Cretella shortly.

First of all, there is nothing new about this. It was a political stunt and the memo is dated January 4, 2018. Secondly, Grassley and Graham are asking for an investigation into potential violations of 18 U.S.C. § 1001, claiming that Christopher Steele made misstatements to the FBI. This does not correlate to misconduct by the FBI, let alone abuses.